Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Ayeyawady United head coach Jozef Herel expects a six-match unbeaten run in the Myanmar National League to count for little in Wednesday’s AFC Cup home opener against Malaysian Super League champions Kelantan.
After a sluggish start to the season, the Yangon side have found their rhythm and gained a credible 1-1 draw at Arema Indonesia in their opening Group H match two weeks ago.
“As far as I have learnt, Kelantan are making good results in Malaysia Super League and are now on top of the league. I think they are the toughest team in our group,” said Slovak coach Herel.
“This is our very first experience of playing in the AFC Cup, but the performance of our team is improving and I hope we can manage a good result.”
Like Ayeyawady, Kelantan are making their first appearance in the AFC Cup this season and are also still seeking their first win after sharing a goalless draw with Vietnam’s Navibank Saigon in Kuala Lumpur a fortnight ago.
“I have some information about Ayeyawady United. I know that they were the runners-up in the Myanmar league with a record of 25 consecutive unbeaten matches last year and I know that they are a strong team,” said Croatian coach Bojan Hodak.
“They will play well on their home ground in front of their supporters so this will be a tough game for my players.”
Also in Group H, Arema will be without Indonesia international defender Gunawan Dwi Cahyo, who was sent-off against Ayeyawady, for the trip to Ho Chi Minh City to face Navibank.
Arema featured in the Group Stage of the AFC Champions League last season, but new coach Dejan Antonic insists this fact offers little advantage due to changes in personnel.
“When we took part in the AFC Champions League last year, we had more experienced players in our line-up,” the Serbian explained.
“However, we are giving more of our young players a chance to play this season so this competition is a good opportunity to give them a new experience. We can learn a lot by playing in the AFC Cup.”
Navibank, meanwhile, will be without striker Nguyen Quang Hai and midfielder Dang Khanh Lam due to injury.
“This season, we are mainly using our young players and unfortunately two of our key men are injured and cannot play,” said Navibank coach Pam Cong Loc
“We have a lot of respect for Arema Indonesia because they are a good team and we expect a difficult game.”